UK Young People Disengaged With Politics and Mistrust the Media

Young people in the UK are disengaged with politics and blame the media for portraying them inaccurately, according to pollster Survation.

The survey, which was conducted on behalf of Sky News and questioned more than 1,000 respondents (aged 16 to 24) in August, found that only 8% of young people said they are fully engaged in the political process.

The research also revealed that just 39% of respondents expressed an interest in becoming more engaged in politics, while half (50%) of young people in the UK said they have no interest in becoming more engaged.

"Most young people don't feel that any of the main political parties represents them," Katy Owen, research manager at Survation, told IBTimes UK.

"Young people aren't as engaged [as other age groups], but they're still interested in politics and they want change."

The survey also found that less than two out of ten (18%) of respondents said they trusted the mainstream media and more than eight out of ten young people said that the media (newspapers, radio, TV) do not portray young people accurately.

When asked which party leader they feel best exemplifies what is important in politicians, 22% said David Cameron, 16% Ed Miliband, 10% Nigel Farage and 5% Nick Clegg.

But the clear winner from the poll was "none of the above" at 47%.

More than half (55%) of young people do not think it should be compulsory to vote compared to 30% who think it should.

In addition, 61% of respondents said the voting age should remain at 18.